A new visitor center for the Blackstone Heritage Corridor will open later this month in Worcester as a $12-million effort to help bring tourists to the region.

The project was three decades in the making, according to the Whitinsville-based nonprofit Blackstone Heritage Corridor.

The center will open to visitors for the first time on Saturday, Oct. 27. A ribbon-cutting and speaking ceremony is scheduled for 9 a.m., and a community celebration from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The center is at 3 Paul Clancy Way, though for GPS purposes, an address of 115 McKeon Road may work best.

The modern brick building features a 4,000-square-foot exhibit hall and classroom space. The building sits on space just off the Blackstone River and Route 146 that has been open for decades.

A mill stood just off the site for decades until it was cleared, first for new uses and later for the Route 146 widening project more than a decade ago.

The Blackstone Heritage Corridor stretches along the Blackstone River from Worcester to Providence. The corridor was established in 1986, and the Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park was added inside the corridor boundaries in 2014.

A second visitor center is located in Pawtucket. The new center in Worcester was funded by a mix of federal, state and regional funds.